Welcome to Burlesque
by I-love-u-long-time
Summary: The life and love of a girl working in the Burlesque Lounge all seem perfect, but what happens when a man comes to test what was once unbreakable?  Alexis/OC. CURRENTLY ON HIATUS
1. Prologue

**This is just something I thought of last year after seeing Burlesque, I saw it and just thought 'there really isn't enough Alan Cumming in this' 1 minute and 20 seconds is far from enough, especially when he's supposed to be one of the people starring in it, ANYWAY before I start rambling this is an Alexis/OC fic, please R&R! This is my first Burlesque fic so please no flaming, if there's any criticism then please make it constructive**

**Disclaimer: I don't own Burlesque or any of it's characters, I do however own Tina and around half of another character who will be introduced in later chapters**

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><p>She was like a perfect porcelain doll, bright eyes shining under dark grey-brown makeup and thick, lengthened eyelashes, waves of sunlight gleaming through her long, dark brown hair, that killer teasing smile, framed by a profound scarlet. Her petite body bent over with her backside swivelling seductively, pulling the audience (the majority of them being men) further into her bewitching dance with the two women beside her, as if they were drunk on the simplicity of seeing her before them, and further still when her body brushed against those of her companions.<p>

He had his back held firmly against the windowless wall, with his arms crossed over his chest, and watched her, as he would anytime he had the opportunity, not daring to take his eyes way from her, and found himself leaning toward the stage each time she swung her ass or slowly pulsated her chest. He saw her eyes flicker to him, and they shared a loving smile, as he eagerly waited for her dance to end, impatiently wanting to fulfil his nightly desire to have her long, luscious legs wrapped firmly around him.

As the music intensified she looked back out to the audience with a flick of her hair and a sway of her waist, keeping an eye out for any man who appeared would spend extra for a private performance. Her eyes glazed over when her thoughts took over, and she smiled lightly to herself when they turned to him, and she thought of how lucky she truly was, to have found a love such as hers, to have his full support over her career choice and whatever decisions came with it, and that she was able to see him both at their home and at work.

He shifted himself back against the wall with a muffled chuckle, only to feel his heart race with relieved excitement when her movements began to slow down. He wove himself between the few people passing by the bar after stealing a final glance at her captivating form, willingly making his way to meet her backstage.

She gave the audience a final teasing smile as the music gradually slowed to a stop, and gave them a flirtatious wink when she struck a rather intimate pose between the two girls, listening to the cheers and applause as she graciously stepped down from the stage and pushed past the waiting performers at a quick pace so she could desperately meet her lover in the change rooms. A childlike grin played across her face when she spied him before her vanity, staring down at her makeup and an unfinished glass of whiskey and gin, no doubt left by Nikki. She made her way over to him, silently but for the sound of her heels against the floorboards, and draped her arms around his, planting a soft kiss at the back of his neck, before she was pulled in front of him and embraced into a tempting, much more passionate kiss.


	2. 1 Bright lights, not so big smiles

**Hope you all enjoyed the prologue, I don't really have much to say about this chapter except don't ask about the nickname, it's all I could think of, hope you enjoy it. Please review! :D**

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><p>Sean briskly pushed through the girls, looking for one girl who seemed to have vanished in the last 10 minutes, and beginning to worry until he had found one of the few girls who would know where Tina had gone.<p>

"Georgia!" he called out to the small red head,

"Yeah?" she responded, leaving her conversation, and quietly cursing as Coco and Jessie started laughing hysterically,

"Where's Tina? She has to step in for Nikki. Three guesses why," he sighed, rolling his eyes at the mention of Nikki's name.

"I saw her go up to the change room before, with Alexis," she giggled with a playful wink,

"Oh no, she's going to become another Nikki," Sean groaned, before climbing the stairs. After the two years he'd had to get used to catching the two together after one of Tina's routines, he wasted no time preparing himself for the worst when he heard soft moans erupting from the entrance to the change room, though after two years he wasn't sure what he considered the 'worst' anymore.

Sean crossed his arms over his chest with a raised brow when he found Tina pinned against the wall, her leg held around Alexis' waist as he kissed her neck, his pants down around his ankles beside Tina's underwear, which had been dropped to the floor, and he cleared his throat, stealing their attention.

"Sean!" she cried, flustered, as she unwillingly pushed Alexis away and hurriedly pulled on her panties, careful not to hook the thin material around the thin heel of her shoes, a small, embarrassed smile spread across her smeared red lips when she saw the mocking concerned look Sean had given them.

"Get dressed, you're on in two minutes," he stated, gesturing toward the lingerie appearing costume decorated with black lace and silver silk Nikki had carefully hung over the top of her vanity mirror. "You might want to clean yourself up a bit first."

Finally finding the ability to use her legs without stumbling, Tina quickly followed Sean through the hall, "But, I've always done the more complicated dances, what-what if I stuff it up?" she nervously pleaded, not noticing the sickly smug smirk on Nikki's face, or that she had pulled at a loose thread hanging from the side of her corset as they'd passed her.

"You'll be fine," Sean assured her, "it's nothing new. Just get out there, dance, mouth the words and keep looking gorgeous." With that, he pushed her forward with a persuading pat on the behind and watched as she put on a flashy smile while the audience cheered excitedly, and more so as the slow jazz number began to quicken.

Her body twisted and turned in flirtatious patterns, secretly pleased that she did not have to share the spotlight with anyone else, before moving toward the edge of the stage, lifting her leg high and slapping her ass with each step. Adding playful smiles for a more innocent look, and throwing her head back when the vocals gasped. Her hands started sliding along her body, not knowing that the thread Nikki had loosened had gotten caught under her nail until less than half of her side had unravelled. She immediately held her arm across her chest before her corset could fall, and looked _down out of embarrassed instinct, though she quickly saved herself by hiding her naked chest_ behind one of the ostrich feathered fans before reaching her hand through and wagged a finger at the audience as if it were a part of the performance, relieved when they began to laugh cheerfully, before grabbing a second fan and using it to cover her bare back if she were to turn it on them.

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><p>Nikki's lips pursed when she leant her weight over to one leg, viciously angered that Tina had worked her way around her attempt to humiliate her, and those idiotic people watching her from the floor were <em>buying<em> it! _Honestly, you have to be the stupidest person on earth not to notice the whole fan act was __**not **__a__part of the act!_ She thought as she rolled her eyes and turned away with a loud huff, catching sight of Alexis watching Tina close behind her,

"I see that slut's ruined two of our nights," she mused bitterly, taking in his not too familiar frustrated expression, which quickly faltered into an annoyed sigh,

"What do you have against her? Honestly, how is it you can find a fault in every single person you meet?" he asked her, clearly tired of listening to her constant bitching,

"Are you serious? She's a stuck up bitch who's stealing my job-"

"Because she doesn't get here an hour late and smelling of whiskey and gin every night," Alexis cut in, "You really are the most hypocritical person I know,"

"Oh please," Nikki scoffed, rolling her eyes, and made to leave for the bar,

"Yeah, you are. All you do is sit on your ass, drink and sleep with the guy who's trying to buy us out,"

"Just look at that," she cut in, staring at the silver haired middle aged man reaching out for Tina's thigh, "she's not even trying to stop him,"

"Look at _that_. All you ever talk about is how great you are and shit talk about everything else," he stated,

"Whatever," Nikki purred, brushing a lock of her dark chestnut hair behind her ear, "Just tell your precious little Tina to keep her disgusting hands off _my_ songs," she responded sharply, before storming off with another childish huff.

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><p>Feeling a strange adrenaline rush flowing through her veins, Tina boldly left the stage, flicking a few stray hairs back over her shoulder, clutching the torn corset to her chest, with an aggravated frown she marched her way to Sean, who until then had been checking on the following dancers, "Sean! That creepy pervert tried to feel me up again!" she exclaimed, stamping her foot as if she were a child having a tantrum, "I thought you said you were going to ban him from the club,"<p>

"I know, Tina bear, we're trying. He keeps finding a way of getting back in. Looks like you've gotten him hooked."

"Well, how can I _un_hook him?" she demanded,

"How could anyone let you get away?" he claimed, perking her head up higher, "Come here." He grabbed her by the wrist and lead her upstairs, seating her at her mirror, "Look there," Sean muttered, holding her hair back out of her face, "you have a beautiful face, you should show it more often." Blushing lightly, Tina smiled, he dropped a hand to her shoulder and lowered his head closer to her ear, "There we go. I thought we lost you for a second."


	3. 2 Music, dancing, alcohol, sex

**Slight spoilers for anyone who hasn't seen the movie yet in this chapter! I'm not too happy with how it turned out, but there's always that one chapter you don't necessarily (omg I think I spelt that RIGHT for once! :D) like, you know? But yeah, the next chapters are better, in my opinion. Please review!**

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><p>Tina let out a deep, exasperated sigh as she threw herself down across the bed, finally able to get off her feet, and allowed herself to sink into the mattress. She closed her eyes and let out a pleased moan, but found she was far too comfortable to move, though her feet were killing her. She groaned slightly and stretched her neck over the blankets beneath her,<p>

"Alexis!" She heard the distant sound of heavy footsteps leading to the doorway before he was seen leading against the frame with a tired raised brow and his arms crossed over his chest. She batted her eyelashes as she looked up at him with a young, innocent smile, "Take my shoes off?" She giggled at his unchanged tireless expression, but closed her eyes again when he gave in, letting out a pleasured sigh when she felt his hands on her skin. Her eyes shot open at his hand now gripped tight around her wrist, and she screamed a spirited laugh as she was swiftly pulled face to face with his kneeling figure, "No! My feet hurt!"

"You aren't on your feet," he countered, an amused smile spread across his lips, a light blush crept up t her cheeks at her mistake,

"Well they hurt anyway – are you wearing my eye shadow?" she questioned, eyes narrowed suspiciously as she saw the familiar dark blue over his eyelids, "You know I couldn't find one of my bras today. You wouldn't happen to have taken it behind my back, would you?"

"Do I look like I need your underwear?" he chuckled lightly,

"You never know. Your look's gotten so much more feminine lately," she stated, looking wy with a mischievous smirk, and lightly pushed him away.

"I'll have you know that this look is just as manly as anyone else's,"

"Yeah? Tell that to my missing bra." Her words were cut when he brought his lips to hers, she smiled into the kiss as she slowly moved her arms behind his neck and parted her lips, her eyes fluttered shut one final time, and in those few elongated moments, she felt all worries she might have held wash over.

She sprawled herself on her back, her shirt and shorts now in a small pile close to his, and both on the floor by the foot of the bed.

"I missed you, baby," she murmured, breathless, and smirking when his lips rejoined hers. She held her arms over his and dug her nails deep into his back with a panted gasp when she felt him course through her with a strong, confident thrust. Her head turned when he slowly moved down her neck, brushed against his hand delicately, felt as though heroin had been rushing through her veins. His other hand slid down to her waist, and he cupped her side. Her body clenched as his rhythm pulsed, before it eased and she arched her back, grinding against him, jaw dropped wide, nails still piercing his back, screaming anticipated moans as he pushed further. One last groaning, gasped moan as the warmth of his shuddering breath brushed against the side of her neck and his weight collapsed against her. When he moved, she wrapped herself around him, her head against his chest, cradled in his arms.

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><p>The sunlight beamed over Tina, Georgia, Coco, Scarlett and Jessie as they stood before the choreographer, watching as she showed the five a new dance, a fast paced number Tess had called Wagon Wheel Watusi. She had a certain glow to her appearance, and was in a way relieved that she had been chosen over the other dancers, though not surprised. She had after all been one of the few girls who'd worked at the club since the start, and one of the most talented.<p>

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><p>The light flickered once as she waited outside the toilet cubicle, a saddened look of pity as she listened to Georgia heaving what sounded like all of her stomach's contents, "Honey, are you alright? Do you need me to hold your hair back?" Tina asked, concern evident in her voice,<p>

"No-no...! I'm fine," Georgia groaned between coughs and chokes, before the flush was heard and she staggered out, with a pained, uncomforted look as she harshly coughed.

"You know you have to tell him, and Tess. They're going to notice eventually," Tina stated,

"I know, and I-I will," Georgia anxiously stuttered, "just give me some more time,"

"I'll tell you what, don't think about it tonight. Go out there and be your usual happy self and when you're ready talk to Tess about it. She'd know what'd be best."

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><p>She sat before her vanity, stroking a light pinkish-red blush across her cheeks while Sean combed back her hair, tying a small knot at the back of her head to give her a small poof-like look. When he stepped back, she got to her feet, modelling the silver sequined dress which ended mid-thigh, excited that they would be dancing the debut for Wagon Wheel Watusi after Tess begun the night,<p>

"How do I look?" she asked him, her voice filled with childish enthusiasm,

"Gorgeous," Sean answered, looking Tina over, head to toe, admiring his work, "Just one thing," he muttered, before carefully picking a fallen eyelash from her cheek. "There, perfect."

An amused smile crossed his lips when she cheerfully hopped on the spot, her heels clicking against the floorboards, when the club owner's feint singing subsided. She downed the last of her vodka and coke to calm herself and shared a friendly kiss on the cheek with him, careful not to rub any of her lipstick off onto him, before eagerly bounding down the steps.


	4. 3 Old acquaintances

**This here's the start of the movie's plot, with the introductions to Marcus (f**king dick) and Ali :D please review! **

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><p>The spotlight beamed over her, reflecting off the silver of her dress, making the sequins gleam and glitter brightly, showing the dimly lit silhouettes of the four girls behind her, not perfectly seen until the band sped up.<p>

Looking out to the audience with her signature smile, she saw the regulars, the people who came every so often, though over at the opposite side of the floor there was a new face – a young, blonde, her naive appearing innocent face watching them closely with interest. She made her way between the tables to the bar, never taking her eyes away from them until Jack took her attention.

Tina shook the thoughts, the girl was only another person who found their dances intriguing, nothing new.

She looked down to the table in front of her, her eyes glaring daggers at the greying haired man, sitting back with two women on either side, smirking and winking at her. She rolled her eyes slightly, though her smile never faltered, and simply ignored him, as always, wishing that somehow his drink ended up being poisoned.

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><p>She burst through the side door, her face contorted into an annoyed frown as she stormed up to the 34 year old ass in front row.<p>

"What the hell do you want, Marcus?" she demanded, hands on her hips,

"You know what I want, beautiful. But since you asked, a scotch on the rocks would be great," he answered, an arrogant smirk on his face,

"Then tell one of the waitresses or get it yourself," she retorted,

"I _could_ do that..."Marcus began, leaning towards her, "But then I wouldn't be able to talk to you."

"Well see the problem there is, the other person has to want to talk to you. Bummer," she groaned in mock disappointed, giving him a brief insensitive look before turning her back to him.

"Wait, wait, wait. Why don't you let me take you to dinner tonight?" he suggested, moving to stand.

"You can't be serious," Tina scoffed, raising a disbelieving brow, "Can you not see just how much I hate you?"

"Oh, I am, and I can. But it's never too late to change your mind,"

"I disagree. It is far too late to even consider thinking any more of you," she said, walking away from his table, rolling her eyes when she heard a hurried 'I'll be right back' and his chair scraping across the floor,.

"Come on, Tina. Let me take you out," Marcus pleaded, a playful innocent look on his face, "I will not take no for an answer,"

"Really? Well, someone's going to be surprised tonight," she sighed,

"Nothing has to happen. We can have a little get-to-know-each-other night out." He stepped in front of her, and gave her his otherwise perfect smile that, for any other girl, would seal the deal, but she simply raised her brow waiting for him to finish,

"Are you done?"

"Come on. I want to take you out. I only want the best," he murmured, inching towards her, a sincere glint in his eye. She pushed past him, and called over her shoulder as she went backstage.

"Then your best girls must change all the time."

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><p>She sat at the side, with Coco and Jessie and a glass of tequila, lemon, lime and a small amount of absinthe, talking about Marcus, throwing in the occasional insult, "He asked me to dinner again," she moaned, taking a small sip of her liquor.<p>

"Again?" Jessie exclaimed,

"Mhmm. And get this," Tina started, crossing her legs, "He said – he said he wanted to take me out, and that he only wants the 'best' of anything," she claimed, "as if that would make it any better for him."

"He's the guy I've ever met in my life," Coco cut in,

"No wonder Nikki has the hots for him," Tina blurted, "it's physics. Assholes and players attract bitches and sluts. They're perfect for each other." She opened her mouth to continue when the blonde from the front room nervously walked by them, attracting the attention of anyone who took the time to notice her.

"Who _is_ she?" Jessie hissed in a low voice,

"I don't know, and I don't care," Coco mused. They quietly murmured between themselves, stopping only when the girl looked at them, a shy, yet suspicious expression filling her eyes.

When she caught the last few drops from her glass on her tongue, Tina stood, brushing down the front of her dress, and placing a hand on Coco's shoulder when she began to sway,

"I don't know, but she seemed to be getting close to Jack," she announced with a mischievous grin. "Anyway, I'm going to see Alexis."

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><p>She laid back across the bar, her legs dangling over the edge, once again dressed in the dress she had arrived in, noting the few men who tried to peek up her legs, with a new emptied shot glass by her knee.<p>

The sound of a door closing took her attention, without moving she looked behind, and quietly let out a groan when she saw Marcus strutting to her.

She hastily swung herself around and sat up, and, grabbing the front of Alexis' shirt, who had only just passed her arm's reach, and pulled him between her legs, dragging one up and down his body, wrapping her arms behind his neck, letting the fingers of one of her hands grasp his hair, moving her lips to his ear. Whispering in a light breath, "Take me home," while sparing Marcus a gaze as if only just realizing he was there seeing it all with a grim, envious frown. And finally, sliding down to her feet and following her lover outside.


	5. 4 Diamonds are a girl's best friend

**I've been watching Sucker punch today and almost immediately thought of a new thingy to put in this and based a new character off of Blue Jones, the fantasy version, with the moustache (most moustaches are hot!), except not as angry or you know, gun friendly. If anyone doesn't know who he is there's a link to a picture of him on my profile. Reviews people!**

**Disclaimer: I still don't own anything from Burlesque, and around half of new guy (I'm deciding between two name choices, so far Johnny is winning)**

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><p>The following night, the blonde, Ali, a girl who Tina learned had moved from a small town in Iowa, was seen once again, working as a waitress, wearing a revealing all black outfit. She made her way backstage, and, seeing the two staring between the curtains, went up to Sean and Nikki to see just what they were watching.<p>

"What's _she_ doing here?" Nikki demanded in a hateful voice, as she glared down at Ali working her way through the tables, stopping to hand out the drinks that filled her tray. "I want her gone now!"

"What'd she do to you?" Sean asked her, poring over a failed body suit having lost interest on the floor,

"..She called me a man," she grumbled,

"Can't be the first time _that's_ happened." He paused to give Tina a quick look when she failed to hide a giggle.

She rolled her eyes when Nikki flicked back her hair and left in a tantrum.

"So how come you're here? Alexis unable to perform tonight?" he asked, giving up on the so far unfixable costume,

"For your information he is too busy to perform," she replied, "Half of the crowd seems to have all come at once,"

"You should be used to that,"

"Bitch," she smirked, hitting his arm playfully, crossing her arms when he gave her a strange look.

"Of course, have we met?"

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><p>Ali carefully balanced the once again full tray on one arm as she slowly opened the side door, serving the drinks one at a time as she saw the dancers, though unable to lose the last.<p>

"Excuse me," she said softly, tapping one of the girls' shoulder, unsure whether it was a good choice when she received an warning look, "Um, have-have you seen Tina?" she asked, curious, but confused, when the girl's displeased look quickly changed to an amused smile and pointed to the stairway.

"She's up in the change room."

She peered around the stairway's railing, gazing into the change room's entrance when she heard the sound of playful laughter, and overheard a voice giggling with a pleasured murmur, "Mmm, you've never done that before," and a man's quite groans. Letting curiosity take the best of her, though bracing herself for what she could be seeing, Ali carefully began to creep her way closer to the voices. She silently thanked god when she saw a woman come into her view, fixing the lower half of her outfit, and untangling parts of her hair, recognising her as one of the lead dancers from last night, and realised what she had missed when a heavily made up man soon followed her.

"Are you Tina?" Ali asked shyly,

"The one and only," the girl answered, confidently striding her way, "That for me? Thanks, honey, you're a doll," she grinned, taking the glass before Ali could answer her.

'Uh, were you – were you two just..." she began, unable to finish,

"Didn't your mom ever tell you it's rude to eavesdrop?" Tina exclaimed, wiping at the corners of her mouth,

"I'm sorry, it's just hard to ignore when you have to go to the source," Ali muttered, scratching the back of her head, "So, Tess really doesn't care that you – you know?"

"Tess? She stopped caring after the second week when she realised it wasn't going to stop," she stated, "Look, honey. If you can't even talk about it, then this really isn't the place for you."

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><p>Since she hadn't had another dance until later in the night, Tina spent the remainder of her time at the bar, face in her palm as Jack dried off a shot glass, "So you and Iowa, hm?"<p>

"What?" Jack asked through nervous laughs,

"It's obvious you have a crush on her,"

"I don't know what you're talking about,"

"Come on, whenever she's around you can't keep your eyes off her," she stated, grabbing a number of bottles and a glass from beneath the counter.

"I don't have a crush on her," Jack retorted, "I'm getting married to Natalie,"

"Please, she's been in New York for how long now? Almost two months? I can guarantee that she has hooked up with at least one guy since she got there,"

"She wouldn't do that. Anyway, back to the point. I just met Ali last night, we're friends."

"Oh, Jack you poor baby. You can be so adorably clueless," she smiled, pouring the alcohol into her glass without looking what she had taken after pinching his cheek lightly, "Whatever happens, as long as you're happy. Just don't get hurt."

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><p>Black laced lingerie, fishnets held up by a garter belt around her trim hips, tall, black heels strapped around her ankles, black gloves reaching her elbows, dark make up for her eyes and lips. Her look was finished by the diamonds clasped around her neck and her wrist and the stage smile which glowed under the bright blue light that showered over Georgia and herself, though the former position would normally be filled by Nikki who had once again arrived late and drunk.<p>

They shared an encouraging smile before Marilyn's voice was heard throughout the room, starting their dance filled with split rolls and high kicks, and capturing the audience's undying attention.

She looked through her long black eyelashes, her eyes smiling suggestively as she bent down low in front of Georgia, her legs separated, feeling the tops of Georgia's thighs pressed against the sides of hers, and her arms wrapped around Tina's waist, holding her up, and kept that pose. She gazed out to one of the front tables, occupied by five new people, all but one of them being men, though her eye was immediately drawn to one; a dark brown haired man, at most in his mid thirties, a long pencil moustache over his lip; and stayed on him. She was certainly familiar with men's eyes lingering over her, that was well known even before working at the club, but not in the way his eyes were fixated on her. Never leaving her or her body, never flinching, never taking as much as a blink, as if he was taking all that he could of her into his memory, and keeping her in the back pits of his mind. Even when the lights were out and you could not see her clearest detail, he never dared take his eyes from her black silhouette until she had stood upright.

She kept watching him as she followed Georgia backstage, watching as he went and spoke with Jack.

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><p>She worked her way between the girls rushing to get ready, and passed by Sean, ignoring his attempts to stop her, and pushed through the side door, keeping an eye out for that man who seemed to feel as though they were the only two in the building, wanting to find out who he was. Feeling disheartened and disappointed when she'd seen he had disappeared.<p>

"Jack!" she called, not knowing how loud she's been speaking through her dazedness, "who was that?"

He looked up from pouring himself a drink, his brow furrowed slightly, "I don't know," he shrugged, "He just came and asked who to talk to about private dances,"

"And?"

"That's it, I told him to talk to Tess and he left,"

Her eyes fell, looking straight ahead into the mirror behind him, "Huh."

"You should talk to her if you want to know any more."

She looked back to him with half dead eyes, and mumbled a hushed "Yeah," to herself mainly, as she turned away.


	6. 5 Reluctant privacies

**Right, first off I would like to give a special thank you to MarineDevilDogWife for the wonderful reviews! Keep them coming, let me know wht you all like, what you don't, all that jazz. Secondly, this here had Blue's first bits of dialogue :D and thirdly, there is some quite graphic adult happenings at the end of this chapter. So hope you're all enjoying this so far, please review!**

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><p>"Tina!" She stopped in her tracks, pausing to look through the few people in front of her to Tess' office, and saw Sean waiting for her a short distance from the door still slowly swinging back and forth.<p>

"Congratulations, Tina bear," he stated when she reached him, a sincere proud smile on his lips, "you've hooked another one. He's inside with Tess, demanding to have a private performance from you," he said in a low voice so as not to be overheard by them, taking in Tina's curious expression, "They're negotiating a price now. Tess won't go a dime under 60,"

"That much?" she asked, her voice dripping with shocked surprise at how much her employer thought she was worth,

"You're the star of the show, baby, you work hard enough to get to the top it starts paying off. By the looks of things when I left, I'd say he's about to crack."

"Wait, I have another dance soon. I can't go with him now," she remembered, shaking her head as she began to back away,

"I know, we'll work it out," he assured her,

"Can't you get someone else to dance for him?"

He shook his head no, "He's refused anyone else Tess suggested, he only wants you. He's enamoured with you." He looked over his shoulder, making sure they were completely out of earshot, then added, "I'm jealous, this one's a looker." Her eyes set on Tess' door, as if she could see the two of them through it, and narrowed slightly, "Yes he is."

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><p>With his back to the bar, Alexis leant against the counter, keeper a watchful eye out for any sign of Tina, becoming confused and tense when he could not find any, and more so when Georgia had gone out instead.<p>

"Hey, Jack? You were talking to Tina before...you know where she went?" he asked, unsure whether he should worry,

"She's in Tess' office. Some guy wants a private session with her, he seemed sort of, attached to her too," Jack mentioned, a warning grimace over his face, "I'd keep an eye on him if I were you." Alexis' jaw dropped to argue against him, that Tina wouldn't have agreed to dance for some suit, when he saw her leading a man to the backroom, no doubt the one Jack was talking about. His face hardened when he saw the guy's eyes concentrating on her back, and, unknowingly, his fingers clenched around the edge of the counter when they repeatedly fell to her waist, down to her hips, to linger on her ass.

"It's fine, perfectly fine," he said through gritted teeth, he could almost hear the intentions running through that clearly overly narcissistic guy's head as Tina closed the door behind them, he turned away from them with a spiteful glare, "give me the strongest drink you have."

"Alexis. Tina's a smart girl, nothing's going to happen with them, she'll know that what you have would be way better than what he could give her," Jack told him, "I've known guys like him my whole life and they're all the same. Used to get anything they want when they want it, if they don't get it they start crying to someone who'd give it to them. She wouldn't want that."

He responded with an uncertain, sarcastic "Sure," before pushing himself upright, "Forget the drink. Don't worry about it." He sent the backroom another hating glare before leaving for the front desk, not sparing anyone the gratification of a backwards glance.

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><p>She leant against the wood of the door, her arms behind her back as she locked it, and keeping her seductive stance and flirtatious smile, she stepped out to the middle of the room, which but for the old small leather sofa backed against the wall, speakers in all four corners, and a standing lamp that filled the room with a dim orange light, was otherwise empty.<p>

"Tess has told you the rules here? No violence or any actions that may cause harm to any of the dancers, no unwanted and/or offensive catcalls, and of course the one man of the men have trouble following, look but don't touch," she stated, briefly dropping her suggestive manner as he followed her with a keen grin, "Now..." she regained her alluring demeanour with her hands on her hips, "Make yourself at home," she purred, pushing him down to the sofa before starting the music, and stood before him, close enough that he could reach out and touch her thigh if he chose. She smiled, though whether it was because she had the chance to earn more money or that she was pleasing him she was not sure, and her chest heaved, along with her legs, until he got to his feet in an overwhelmed rush and pulled her face to his, forcing her into an overpowering, lusting kiss.

Her hands grabbed the back of his hair, and though he'd taken this as a sign to go further and push his tongue between her lips, she held his head further from hers.

"Have you already forgotten the rules?" she asked him, shocked, uneven breaths escaping from her as she gained her professional composure and backed away from his towering form, "Look but don't touch."

He grabbed her by the arms and pinned her to the wall, ignoring the surprised grunt that came from her,

"Tina, right?" His voice was smooth, though a hint of danger was evidently hidden deeper within. She closed her eyes, taking in a firm breath as she felt a strange new pleasure from being held beneath his strong hands, something she was not used to from Alexis. When they opened, she allowed herself to show her pleasure with a manipulative smile,

"And you are...?"

She raised an expectant brow at his increasingly desiring smirk,

"Blue Jones," he finally answered her, not bothering to hide his self importance.

Once again he'd attempted to kiss her, and once again she'd had to pull his head back, "You have one more chance, Blue. If you break the third rule one more time I'll be forced to have you thrown out," she purred, looking him in the eye.

"There are no windows in this place, right?" he claimed, brushing the back of his hand down her cheek, causing her to shiver slightly under the cold metal of the ring around his little finger, "no one has to find out."

"Unless I decide to tell them," she retorted, giving him a brief smug smirk. He brought his hand to her face and snatched her jaw, keeping her eye on him,

"I paid good money for you," he stated, inching closer to her lips, "So until you get out there again, you're mine,"

"You paid for a dance from me," she corrected, keeping her bold yet calm serenity,

"And I'll be deciding what you'll be doing," he finished, running a hand along her arm.

Her eyes narrowed as she though it over, but eventually she recoiled and nodded curtly, "What dance do you want?" she asked him, though knowing what his answer would be.

He grabbed her hand and dragged her after him, spreading his legs and pulling her down between them when he fell back to the sofa. With the music still playing she gave him another suggestive smile and positioned herself over him, holding her hands against his shoulders, feeling his hands cup her waist, swinging her hips side-to-side, grinding them across his legs, his thighs, to meet his. But removing herself when she felt him stir between her legs, muttering in a single flustered breath, "Your-your time's up," and bolted out to the front room. Not noticing the reluctance to let her go in his eye when he stood to go after her, or the pained pleasure as he slowly sunk back down and opened his fly, and slipped his hand down the front of his pants.


	7. 6 New attractions, rough seduction

**I'm not too happy with how this chapter ended up, for the most part, there's one part of it I do like, that I had quite some fun writing. Wrning, there is one mid length light graphic loving in this chapter, other than that it's fine, and other than that there is no Blue in this one. Please review! Let me know what you like, what you don't, you know. :D**

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><p>She'd found Alexis in the main hall, his glassy eyes looking at the pictures covering the walls without really seeing them, for a second they'd dropped when he heard the clinking of her heels hitting the wood of the floor.<p>

"What are you doing here?" she asked him, worried that he hadn't been in the front room, wrapping her arms around him when she saw he was anything but happy, "What's wrong?" she asked softly, propping her chin onto his shoulder, groaning in surprise when he'd wrenched himself away from her, "Alexis, what's wrong?"

"Nothing. Everything's just fine. Just dandy," he spoke in a flat voice, taking a brief, emotionless look at her,

"Don't tell me you're fine. You are _not_ fine. So talk," she snapped, immediately following him when he pushed past her, "Alexis!"

She grabbed his wrist, holding him back with a concerned frown when a thought crossed her mind, "It's because I danced for that guy, isn't it?"

"I hate it when you take them to the backroom!" he finally exclaimed, making her jump in shock at his sudden outburst, "I hate it. I hate sitting back, knowing what they'd rather be doing with you – but unable to do anything about it. And...and I hate that you let it happen," he admitted, lowering his voice toward the end,

"You hate it when I go to the backroom?" she questioned, "Why? You don't trust me. Is that it?"

"No. You could walk in here wearing nothing at all and I'd trust you. It's them I don't trust,"

"If you did trust me then you wouldn't hate it, because you'd know I wouldn't do anything with them. I love _you_, Alexis, not them," she assured him, letting out a relieved sigh when he kept her hands behind his neck, though a jealous anger still filled his eyes.

She took a step back and ran one of her hands through her hair, "Look. Let's just go back out there for the last half hour, we'll go home and we'll relax – we'll just..lay in bed for the rest of the night or something."

He didn't say anything, but he gave her a weak forced smile and a single curt nod, and though she knew he was still silently raging, she smiled childishly when his arms hesitantly grabbed her.

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><p>His lips left a burning sensation on hers when he kissed her, the insinuation of cigar smoke washed over his wet tongue as it took over her mouth. His hands, which had been cupping her breasts, fell loosely to her waist. His touch made her blood rush excitedly, violently. She bit his lip, before throwing her head back with a dropped jaw, her hands pressed down into his shoulders, her bent back leaning over him, otherwise silent moans passing her lips when her hips began to rock with a slow, though stronger, rhythm.<p>

Her arms wove behind his back and she pulled him up to face her, holding both of their sweat ridden bodies together. He brought his lips to her neck while his confident hands travelled lower, grasping the back of her thigh, trailing kisses down to her shoulder, to her collarbone, before firmly planting them on her chest.

She found herself winding around him tight, closing any gap that may have been between them, her fingers clenched in his hair. He held his head back, revealing the intensely pleased smirking face, not Alexis', but Blue's. A moment went by where they looked into the other's eyes, but it was ended when she brought her hand to his cheek, and held her lips against his in a meaningfully passionate kiss.

Her eyes opened and she brought her hand to her forehead, only to remove it when she noticed her skin was hot and wet, relieved to find herself in her own bed. The dream had left her with mixed emotions, she had to admit that she found Blue attractive, though he was clearly a dangerous man, to those on bad terms with him at least, his confidence, charm, smooth talking and danger drew her to him, had her interested. Those fifteen minutes, which seemed to have been noticeably prolonged, had been more than enough to capture her curiosity, and more than enough for her to crave his tense, violent intimacy.

When she found herself sinking further into her thoughts of Blue, she turned to her side, wanting to talk to Alexis to distract herself. She cried out quietly when she saw she was alone, somewhat distraught as she thought he may have left her while she slept, though she quickly dismissed it when she remembered he had decided to spend the night on the sofa.

She peeked out into the living room from the open doorway, and saw him laying peacefully on his back, before silently creeping across the cold wood floor to stand beside him. She knelt down and desperately shook his arm, all the while hissing, "Alexis!" Not stopping until she saw his uncomfortable stirs.

"What?" he groaned, furrowing his exhausted brow, appearing to have forgotten his crisis.

"Come to bed," she pleaded, "I'm lonely. I need to talk,"

"What time is it?" he asked, slowly sitting up,

"I don't know, early," she shrugged, "we need to talk,"

"Now?"

"Yes,"

"Tina, I'm tired, it's still dark out," he complained, yawning,

"We need to talk about us. And earlier," she stated softly, but firmly,

"Alright," he sighed in defeat, giving her an insensitive smile, "go ahead."

"You can't keep getting jealous, you're getting worked up over nothing. Those guys, all they are is extra money, they aren't getting any special treatment. It's my job, I go out there, look pretty and dance. And if the time calls for it I give them a private performance. You know their limits and so do they, all this..." she blurted, gesturing to the sofa, "is unnecessary. Alexis, it's only going to be you and me, no one else, for the rest of our lives. But if you can't keep yourself from reacting like this we can't stay together." She got to her feet, a solemn look on her face as she stared down at his blank expression, "I don't want to leave, but it you can't even stay in the same bed as me because of your jealousy I'll have to. Unless you want me to, then it would be much easier for to just tell me than to wait for me to get fed up and go."

"I don't want you to leave," he quietly responded,

"No?"

"No. I don't want anyone else," he admitted slowly, softly choking as he struggled to find the right words, "I'm, sorry."

"You'll try to control your anger?" she asked, a determined behaviour now taking over,

"Yes,"

"So will you come to bed?" she held her hand out and waited for him to take it, letting out a sigh of relief when he had.

"You know Blue means nothing to me, right?" she murmured, resting her head on his arm after she'd helped him up,

"Yes,"

"Good." She breathed, who it was she was trying to convince she didn't know, whether it was Alexis, or herself.


	8. 7 As long as you're here

**I know it's been AGES since my last update, school, bad mood swings and unhappy and stressed moods are not a good mix. But I finally hve chapter 7 up, and I'm currently working on chpter 8, hopefully I'll have that done and up soon. Anyway, there's some not so romantic, but hot action between Tina and Blue ;) it'll get better as it goes on, and that goes for Alexis as well lol. Also, I realized that Ali hasn't been in it that much, so to make up for that she's back in this one :D. Reviews please! Let me know what you like, what you don't, what I could improve on, all that jazz! :D**

**Disclaimer - I don't own anything from the movie Burlesque or the character Blue Jones, I only own Tina**

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><p>She hadn't been able to get back to sleep after retrieving Alexis, causing her movements to become noticeably slower, and much less graceful, than the music, despite her many efforts to keep it otherwise.<p>

As expected she found Blue seated front and centre, his eyes stuck to her in a knowing smirk, but she ignored him, and kept her mind on keeping an attractive smile and making the correct steps, or if she were offstage, to keep her mind at ease. Though every so often, she found him creeping through the barriers of her thoughts and she would share a swift look that lasted no longer than a second

She struggled to keep still when the band struck its last chord, feeling her legs and her arms begin to shake uncontrollably. But she fought the urge to straighten her back and forced herself to stick to it until she was allowed to stagger offstage, where she made her way to the bar,

"I need something to wake me up. Give me something with caffeine," she drawled between a yawn, not watching as Jack mixed her drink, though she recognised the smell of vodka, gin and coke when she raised the shot glass to her lips, but her sip was cut short when she felt a hand on her shoulder strain her around to see into the angered face of Blue. She smiled and raised her glass in a greeting, "It's always good to see regulars. Well, most anyway," she claimed, stealing a quick side glance at Marcus laughing with his usual group of women half his age, rolling her eyes when he caught sight of her and gave her a casual wink. She took a long gulp of her drink, the alcohol mixed with the lack of sleep already making her feel tipsy, "So serious," she grumbled, furrowing her brow playfully, "did someone wake up on the wrong side of bed?" she asked him, speaking as though she was with a child when his anger hadn't faltered, "What's gotten you so unhappy?" He took her free wrist, not noticing or caring about the warning glare Jack threw at him when he led her to the backroom, the one place the music would drown out almost all noise they would be making.

He locked the door behind him, and swaggered over to her, snatching the glass from her when she made to drink from it,

"Hey! Give that back now!" she shouted, swinging her arms out to take it back, though he simply moved his hand back out of her reach, further with each of her attempts,

"You can have it back when we're done," he stated in a less than comforting voice. He placed the glass on one of the sofa's flat arms, then pinned her to the wall with her arms over her head, held in one of his hands, before she could grab it. A menacing grin stuck to her face when she felt his grip tighten, and the alcohol begin to flow to her head.

"You want another little kiss?" she purred against his opened lips, keeping her face inches away from his, "Okay, but you should know I have a boyfriend just out there so we'll have to be quick." Her brow furrowed in confusion when he refused to claim her mouth.

"You know, when you ignore me, especially after a long, fucking hard day, it's disrespectful, and _very_ upsetting," he told her calmly, running a hand down her cheek, keeping her face in place, "But you aren't a disrespectful girl, are you, Tina?"

A gratified smirk played over his face when her body shifted beneath him, twisted with an arousing pleasure when his fingers closed around her jaw and let his lips hover over hers, gave a breathy, alluring laugh when she felt his hot breath hit them, pushed her waist back to the wall, "Not unless you want me to."

"Exactly. And you know I'm not a man to be messed with. The one time you fuck up, it's over, I don't give anyone second chances, you're gone," he murmured, lightly brushing his lips against hers, "And frankly, I don't give a shit if you have a boyfriend. I told you last night, as long as I'm here you're mine...you're mine."

An excited moan was silenced when he kissed her, their open mouths mirroring each other's movements. His tongue licked her lip before roaming her mouth, leaving her with the mixed taste of cigar smoke and a number of mixed alcohol when he broke the kiss, far too soon, just as he had begun to slow down with tempting desire, just as her disoriented want was beginning to be fulfilled. Only realising now that his whole body was pressed against her, standing between her legs.

"Don't forget that, baby doll," he scolded, dropping his hands from her, allowing her arms to clench around his neck. She pulled back with his lip between her teeth, her eyes sparkling devilishly as she peered into his dark brown ones.

"As long as you're here, I'm yours."

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><p>She clumsily made her way back to the bar, every few steps pausing briefly to keep herself from crashing to the floor, finding Ali laughing with Jack. She cleared her throat, gaining their attention,<p>

"What?" she snapped when the waitress looked at her curiously, trying to figure her out,

"Aren't you in relationship with the host?" she was asked, the blonde's voice soaked with confusion,

"What's it to you?" Tina demanded, crossing her arms over her chest,

"So why are you going into the backroom with some other guy?" Ali then asked, "And leaving with your lipstick smeared over half of your face?"

"Listen here, _Ali_. I was dragged into the backroom, I had no choice in the matter. And it's none of your damn business what I do with my personal life. Besides, it's just a little fun," she remarked, with an amused smirk, "It's not like you can talk anyway, look at you, flirting with an engaged man,"

"We weren't flirting, Tina," Jack told her over his shoulder, "we were having a perfectly innocent conversation,"

"Oh come on, Jack! Stop denying you like the girl," she slurred, "What did you put in my drink?"

"Just vodka, gin, coke and lemon. You know you shouldn't drink when you're tired, it only makes you drunk faster," Jack claimed,

"I'm not drunk. I'm just – still tired," she cut in,

"And drunk,"

"And drunk," she nodded, "wait...no, not drunk. I'm not drunk. I will climb onto the bar and show you all how not drunk I am!" she stated, slamming her palm flat on the counter before attempting to use a stool as a step, though unable to keep her unbalanced feet from slipping from the finished wood of the seat.

"Oh yeah, you're completely sober," Ali mused, a judging smirk on her lips as Tina looked back to her,

"I am," she huffed, "I don't have time to waste trying to get you to believe me. I have to get changed for the next song."

"Don't go out there again, Tina, you could hurt yourself," Jack started, "Take a rest in the change room and sleep this off,"

"I'm not drunk! I'm tired, but when I get out there I'll be awake," she slurred, backing away from them, "so you, two..stay here, and don't try to stop me!"

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><p>"Where the hell are you, Tina!" Sean muttered under his breath as he searched for the girl, "You have one more minute before I get – Tina! There you are!" he cried, bringing a hand to his chest as he calmed himself,<p>

"Here I am!" she announced, almost tripping over her feet, "I'm not too late am I? What's wrong?" she asked him, now seeing the stern frown on his face,

"You're drunk," he said,

"Not you too!" she complained, "I'm not drunk. I can prove it, just let me go out there and I'll prove it," she exclaimed,

"No, no. You'll only ruin your fabulous reputation. Go to the change room and – sleep it off until you're better,"

"But – "

"No buts," he scolded, pausing to stop a passing Coco, "Coco puffs, go out there for Tina, will you? And you," he then said, turning back to her, "Go."


	9. 8 Unpleasing nights

**I'm quite proud of myself, I didn't expect to get this chapter done tonight, I stayed up lter than I'm supposed to to get this done and I have school tomorrow so I think I deserve a few reviews for this, don't you? Anyway, this starts the further storyline between Blue and Tina, finally, so yeah. Reviews! Please! :D**

**Disclaimer - I don't own anything from the movie Burlesque or the character Blue Jones, I only own Tina**

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><p>A hand on her arm shaking her vigorously had her regain consciousness, and her eyes fluttered open for her to find Jessie standing over her. She sat up, only to clutch her forehead when a throbbing pain shot through her head,<p>

"How are you feeling?" she asked her softly,

"Not too good. Alcohol and exhaustion is not a good mix," Tina groaned, "what time is it?"

"A few minutes before midnight. We're just starting to clean up. You should get dressed,"

"I was out for three hours?" Tina asked, incredulously, "Shit!"

"It's alright," Jessie smiled, "Tess was a little annoyed, but Sean told her how you had a bit of a um..rough night last night,"

"Huh. Is-is Alexis still downstairs?"

"Yeah. He's waiting on the floor. Are you good to get dressed? Do you need any help?"

"No, thank you." She pushed herself to stand, holding herself up with her mirror.

"Oh, and before I forget," Jessie started when she made to leave the room, "There was a guy asking for you earlier, he said to tell you a uhh...Blue Jones was looking for you," she said, producing a folded strip of paper, "he said to give you this. I think it's his number," she giggled, a child-like glint in her eye when Tina grabbed the paper from her hand.

"The girls and I are going to get some sushi. You want to come with us?" Tina brushed down the front of her jeans, carrying herself as she gently swayed when she changed her heels, and tied her shirt around herself,

"No, thanks. I'm just going to go home and go to bed."

She let out a slow, relaxed breath as they shared a small smile,

"Well, get better soon, sweetie."

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><p>Heated water rushed over her bare skin, dripping from the ends of her hair, steam rising in the air, filling the closed in room with no way of escape. She was pressed to the wall of the shower, held by him, her leg around his waist, held in his hand. His lips, switched between being held against her own lips and her neck. Her nails clawed his back, dug deep into his skin, as she held him against her, and felt his pulsing rhythms heaving inside her legs, varying the amount of her he filled with each powerful thrust.<p>

When she woke she clenched her fists, throwing them against the mattress in aggravated frustration. And flipped herself onto her stomach, draped over Alexis' body, a suggesting smile set firmly upon her face when he eventually joined her.

"Tina? What do you want?" he yawned, looking down at her through unmade eyes, spying the fun loving fire burning within her own. She bent down to meet his lips, touching them with a light, enticing brush of a kiss, breathing against them in a low murmur, "I want you."

She ran a finger along his chest, and kissed him, biting his lip with a satisfied laugh, but let go when she felt his hands on the sides of her face remove her mouth.

"Now? What is it? 2:00 in the morning? Aren't you tired?" he sighed, struggling to keep up his effort to keep her back.

"I was asleep for most of the night at the club, I've had my rest for tonight. Until we're done," she grinned, carefree, yet rebellious and stimulated, and laid her hands to rest just below his shoulders, and kissed him, and he let her, and hesitantly let his hands travel down the sides of her body, slowly removing both sets of underwear. Turned her onto her back. Listened to her giggle as his lips slid down her neck, making sure he hit every mark. Listened to her moan as he slipped inside. Watched her as her eyes shut, and her head drift into his pillow when he sunk deeper. Lifted her from her back with a grunt as he made his first thrust. Lifted her from the bed and held her against the wall as he continued. Felt her fingertips sink into his flesh when his movements grew stronger.

She threw her head back, opened eyes scrunched as she moaned and gasped helplessly, and finally groaned breathlessly, "Blue..."

He came to a sudden stop, immediately pulling away and sinking between the bed sheets, and turned away from her with a blank emotionless stare.

"What's wrong?" she breathed heavily,

"You said Blue," Alexis remarked darkly.

Her eyes widened, silencing her alarmed anxiety, thankful for the fact he could not see her.

"-No I didn't – "she stammered, sounding less confident than she would have liked.

"Yes, you did. You said Blue," he sneered, shifting further from her.

"No, I said 'you'," she claimed, though she knew he didn't believe her, "I was saying 'you are amazing'."

"Please, how stupid do you think I am? Just admit you said another guy's name, it's not a big deal,"

"If it's not a big deal then why are you getting so mad?"

"Because you're lying about it, it's actually insulting that you think I'd believe it when it sounds nothing like 'Blue',"

"Baby..." she made to wrap herself around his side, but her arms were held back before they could properly grasp him.

"No. You stay there, dream about _Blue_. And I'll be here."

"Alexis – "

"Just say that you like the guy, admit it," he snapped, suddenly turning back to her.

"I don't like him. I don't like anything about him! How many times do I have to say it? _I don't like him_," she told him, her voice sharp with building annoyance.

"Why can't you say it? It's the truth, we can all see it, admit it,"

"Fine! I admit; there's a part of me that finds him attractive!" she yelled. She hadn't planned on saying it to him, she hadn't planned on telling anyone, but the growing jealousy and the blazing anger that came from it had finally become far too much for Tina to live with a second longer. "But that's it. It's nothing, I don't want to be with him, Alexis, I want to stay with you!"

She moaned when he stayed silent, simply lying on his back, staring into the ceiling with the same deathly glare from the start.

"You need to talk! There are going to be more problems between us the longer we stay together, and if you don't start talking to me they aren't going to be fixed, they'll only get worse until they're too difficult for us to handle. So start talking!"

"You want me to talk? Fine, I'll talk. I don't believe it, you think he's attractive, I don't believe that's it. I don't want to see you with him anymore," he growled dangerously,

"It's my job! I'm a dancer! I can't just refuse to dance for someone just because you don't like it, if I did that I would've been fired years ago. You can believe whatever you like, it's the truth. I don't like him, he's a revenge crazed ass, he said so himself earlier, I don't want to do anything with him and I never will. I want to stay with you, Alexis, but if you can't let it go I'll leave through that door right now. You say you don't want me to go, but if you didn't then you would believe me over anyone else, if you didn't you wouldn't be acting like this, so make up your mind. Do you want me, or not?" she demanded, preparing herself to remove herself from him.

"I want you to stay. But I don't want to see him again," he finally answered, slowly beginning to soften,

"We can't ban him from the club, he hasn't done anything wrong, he knows it. You're going to have to live with him being there," she stated, laying back, though turning her back on him. "I'm going to sleep. You can do whatever you want tonight."


	10. 9 Take it all p1

**This chapter annoyed me quite a bit in the last few weeks, writers block is quite the b***h. But eventually I came up with an ending, sort of, I could have made this one longer but if I did it would've gone on for AGES, so I've put it into two parts, and I admit, I rushed the ending to this part a _teeny_ bit, I want to get to the Blue romancing as quickly as possible! The song in this chapter is from the musical Nine (which I absolutely LOVE), and you would all be better off if you saw the actual performance on youtube to see the whole 'dance' actually goes. Anyway! If you want to review that would be most helpful, this is one of my stories that your opinion could improve.**

**AN - I saw The three musketeers yesterday, and the minute I saw Orlando Bloom as the Duke of Buckingham I just HAD to write something for him, and I've also gotten a HUGE Lord of the Rings obsession (for the millionth time) and am thinking of writing a Legolas story along with that. So the updates for this story may be even worse than they've been lately. But who knows? We'll have to wait and see.**

**Disclaimer - I don't own anything from Burlesque, I don't own Blue Jones (but god, if I did...) and I don't own the song 'Take it all', I do however own Tina and any other new characters you see here**

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><p>"Please, Tess. Let me do 'Take it all', I need this. Surely you've been on the verge of killing a guy!" she begged, following the mother figure like a lost puppy, "Please! I need to let out my emotion!" Those were the words which got her in front of her mirror, wearing the simple black dress that hugged her small curves, and her strong hips perfectly, and the silver elbow length gloves along her arms. A cold look in her eye as Sean pinned back her hair.<p>

"Trouble in Tina's paradise?" he asked her over the chatter of the girls behind them,

"Worse than ever," she growled,

"That's an understatement, her and Alexis have been at it for the last four nights," Nikki cut in, outlining her eyes, "I don't blame him, I'm surprised he's lasted this long with you,"

"Stay out of it, Nikki, no one asked for your opinion," Scarlett shot, elbowing the back of her head when she passed her chair, though Tina paid no mind to the brunette.

"Is it Jones?" Sean softly whispered, quiet enough that no one but Tina could hear. She stayed silent for a moment, focusing on straightening her dress before answering in a dangerously flat voice. "It's everything. He gets jealous over everything lately and I'm sick of it." She turned to face him, her face blank, "So now I'm going to give him something to be jealous about."

Music flooded the room, a slow swing beat carrying throughout, but no recorded voice.

"_Not with the recording," Tina commanded Tess, her eyes filled with a determination.  
><em>"_You can't be serious," the club owner scoffed, hoping that it was only an act, "You can do the song, but you aren't singing."  
><em>_The older woman stood to leave, but the younger girl grabbed her wrist and pulled her back around,  
><em>"_Tess," she spoke before the woman had a chance to shout at her unacceptable behaviour, "I have to do this!"_

The lights shone red, reflected off the mirrors behind her, making it seem like the flames of hell dancing around her. And her eyes, filled with a scorching fury, burning with the frustrated hatred, similar to the raging hatred she revealed when she began to sing.

A feint hint of a sinister smirk crossed her as she refused to give even a passing glance toward Alexis, not gracing him with her acknowledgement, knowing the intensity of his own anger boiling inside. Loving the feeling of ecstasy as she could almost feel it growing while she danced, with an elegant seduction, and let her hair down when she'd stripped down to her racy lingerie, and fed Alexis' anger with a teasing smile aimed at the man he hated most. Unfastening her brassier, hiding a satisfied laugh when he moved closer to her, his eyes concentrating more than ever, silently begging her to remove her arm from her breasts. His desiring gaze never faltering from them until she was out of sight, brassier in hand. The men's jeering whistles and cheers becoming louder when she had bent down to grab it, exposing the swells of her breasts bulged over the sides of her arm.

She had stormed out of the spotlight almost immediately, needing to get out of any man's proximity, or any man who spend countless hours reattaching sequins and lace to bits of eye grabbing cloth.

She didn't stop to answer anyone who asked whether she was okay, just continued to stomp upstairs, a flat blank glare remaining, to slip a light silk robe around her shoulders and let herself fall to the small seat by her mirror. Elbows leaning on the desk, she buried her face in her hands, unable to fight the mixed tears threatening to envelop her.

She sat upright when she heard a set of light footsteps at the doorway, expecting to see Coco, Jessie or Georgia, and wiped her hands beneath her eyes before her makeup could properly run down her face when she saw Ali.

"What do you want?" she demanded with a sniff, "you want to insult me? You know, kick me while I'm down? Make me feel worse? Too late, I already feel like complete shit."

"I just thought you might want a drink?" the blonde said, holding out a glass of clear liquid for her.

"Is this a joke? You wait for me to take it and then mock my drinking?" Tina snapped, pausing to stop new tears from shedding,

"That's not it, I saw that you were pretty unstable out there so I thought you might want some . . . support," the blonde coaxed, "You want to talk about it?" Her voice was soft, comforting, as she stared down at her with a pitying glance.

"What would you know about it? You're just a small town girl," Tina grunted, "You probably had the perfect life and perfect guy," Tina sobbed, eventually snatching the glass,

"You glamorize us small town girls way too much," Ali mentioned with a small laugh, "There's a reason I left Ohio."

"Yeah? And what was that?"

"I was stuck at a dead end job that would have taken me no where, I wanted to be a dancer and there was no way I could do that there," Ali started, "But that's not the point. You know I once had this boyfriend who was an absolute ass. I mean, I couldn't even go out with a couple of friends because they were guys and he'd get jealous and possessive. I knew that we wouldn't work so I go up to him with my bags packed and I tell him that I'm leaving," she pulled up a seat beside Tina, "So he tries to win me back, saying that he'll change, but I don't listen and slam the door in his face without another word. Not all relationships work out, no matter how hard you try."

The corner of her mouth flicked to a quick smile as Tina nodded slowly, barely moving her head.

"So how are you and Alexis going?" the blonde then asked, laying a gentle hand on Tina's arm, who let out a saddened sigh,

"Terrible," she answered before draining her glass' contents, "I love him more than anything, but sometimes I . . . sometimes I wish we never got together." Her eyes widened when she realised how she had just sounded, "I mean, the last week have been worse than anything we've ever been through, it'd kill me if we ended it. If we never got together we wouldn't be here now, and I wouldn't be sitting here and slowly getting drunk."

She locked eyes with the blonde for a short moment and left her glass alone on her desk when she turned herself to face her.

"I want to fix things between us, but I don't know what to do," Tina cried, letting Ali move a comforting arm around her shoulders.

When a knock interrupted her sobs, she dabbed at her eyes, thankful to see Georgia approaching her with open arms. "Are you alright?"

"Yeah, I'll be okay. Ali's helped me,"

"Are you sure?"

"Yes," Tina smiled weakly, "I'll be fine."

"Okay. If you want to talk about it you know I'm here," Georgia assured her, though an uncomforted look quickly replaced her smile, "Blue's asking for you. It looked like he was ready to get you himself when I saw him."

"Tell him I'm busy, I can't see him now," Tina groaned, fighting the temptation to hide away.

"I tried my best, but he won't listen. He's demanding to see you. I only just got him back to his seat. But, I don't think you want to go out there right now . . . " the red head said.

"Why? What's happening?"

Georgia hesitated, unsure what to tell her,

"Well – after you left the stage, Tess was talking to Alexis - " she started, though was cut off when Tina suddenly stood and marched out of the room.


	11. 9 Take it all p2

**Chapter 9 is now officially complete! :D Yay I've finally recieved a new reviewer! Thank you so much SleepyWolf2365, I am so glad you hate Blue, he was just made to be hated, except he was actually one of my favorite characters in Sucker Punch :S lol Anyway! I have plans for the next chapter, and I will start writing it ASAP! Though I may throw out one or two of the points, we'll see how it goes, I may write a little hidden chapter sort of thing. So! Much appreciated if you want to review. I'll do my best to reply to as many of them as I can.**

**Disclaimer - I don't own anything from the movies Burlesque or Sucker Punch, I do however own Tina and any other new character you see**

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><p>She knew what she was about to see, still she had not prepared herself, to see Alexis holding himself firmly against the two contortionists, putting himself into incredibly intimate positions with them.<br>She found her breath escaping in short wisps, her anger flared, and shattered her newly regained common sense when she saw him twisting into every possible arrangement one could imagine, and just over half they had achieved together, to the audience's amusement.  
>She lost herself in an animalistic rage. She wanted to hurt him, every fibre of his being, and she knew how she could when she saw him, laughing away with the rest of the crowd. A sinister smile crossed her lips as she strode to him, and sat across his lap with her bare legs crossed and her hands linked behind his neck. And without a second wasted she leant in to him, crashing her lips over his. And all she could hear was the sound of the music mixing into the laughter as she sunk every bit of effort and passion into the heated kiss.<p>

At first Blue was shocked, having been taken by such an immediate surprise, but within a moment he had settled, and placed his hands on her; one at the back of her head, gripping he hair tightly, while the other trailed up her thigh, beneath the folds of her robe. She quivered when his thumb rubbed the inside of her leg, but her moan was muffled by his tongue. She could taste him, along with the whiskey and smoke.  
>She grasped his hair and pulled away at the light but shrill twang of a triangle, and spoke in an alluring breath against his ear,<br>"You're taking me home tonight."

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><p>She went backstage with the intention to corner Alexis and let out the last bits of her anger, before her rational mind could take the opportunity.<p>

She caught him by the staircase, and when he faced her she struck him, with as much strength as she could muster, across the cheek.

"I hate you, I really do," she exclaimed, without caring who had heard, ignoring the few people she had attracted, "After that I despise you! What the hell was that? I was going to apologise and suggest we find a way to work us out. I regretted everything that happened, but now." She paused to give him a scathing glare, "You can just go to hell for all I care." He shook Georgia away when the red head tried to restrain her,

"Wait, you're getting mad about what I did out there?" he asked her, "Why? It's just job, isn't it?"

"No, Alexis. You're the host. You let people in, let them out when they want to leave, and kick them out when they get out of hand. You _don't_ perform."

"Tess asked me to, I had to," he said through gritted teeth,

"Oh don't give me that shit! You went out there to get back at me! And you know it." She screamed at him, causing the small crowd gradually grow around them. "You think that you're a better person, and that you're more mature, but really you're no better than I am. You're a child, and I can't deal with it anymore!" she cried, now allowing Georgia to leave a hand on her shoulder, "If this is how it's going to be between us, we aren't going to work out."

He dropped his gaze for a moment, but when he looked back up he was no longer angry, but hurt, "So what do we do now?"

"We need to take a break."

"So, that's it? We're over?"

She shakes her head, blankly, "We've been over since the start, we've just been too stupid to notice."

She turned away from him, unable to deal with the rush of emotion building up inside, leaving her head spiralling out of control, and left him before she could see his final reaction, to find the one woman who could help her calm her nerves.

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><p>She was found there, sitting behind the desk of her office, pouring over papers with her fingers through her long black hair, a near empty glass beside her elbow.<p>

"Tess?" Tina's voice had become soft, her vulnerability clear as she slowly stepped toward her.

She let out an exhausted sigh when she looked up at her, revealing light tear stains beneath her eyes,

"It's nothing for you to worry about," she choked, answering Tina's unasked question, "What do you want?"

"You're the strongest woman I know, Tess. You haven't had a man since Vince and you're perfectly fine with that," Tina started,

"So you wanted advice on your own love life," the older woman finished for her, "So you two finally ended it?"

The brunette blushed lightly, "You heard that?"

"Honey, I think the whole club heard you," Tess laughed quietly, with a weak smile,

"Oh." Tina sat down in front of her, embarrassed and confused, "Well, yeah. I need your advice. Tell me what to do?" she begged, her eyes pleading for her help.

"Blue's caught your eye, hasn't he." Her smile faded with that statement, being replaced by a stern frown,

"You don't like him."

"I don't trust him," Tess told her, "There are good men out there, who want to keep you happy, and safe, and loved. And there are bad men, like Blue. You'll learn who you can trust and who you can't. I know I can't tell you what to do with your personal life, but I want you to be safe. If it were me I would stay as far away from him as possible, but you're a smart girl, you'll make the right decision for yourself."

Tina nodded slowly, sadly, "What about Alexis?"

"That's all up to you. Can you see yourself with him in the long run? Maybe get married and pop a couple of kids out with him?"

She laughed softly, "I used to, but now . . . no, not anymore."

The older woman gave her a comforting smile, and reached over with a motherly hand. "There's your answer."


	12. 10 Calming the nerves of a Hellcat

**Have you ever thought that you'll eventually get over a guy, but then that one moment you see him, no matter how long or short the moment is, you realise you never will and all you want is to be with him? Well that is made much worse when you're sure he doesn't feel the same, and IMO, that hurts much more than if you were to get together and break up for whatever reason. But enough of my recent feelings and occurences, this here is chapter 10! Done and ready for your viewing pleasure :D Nikki is back! :D God I used to hate her, but now I just love her! (lol) Anyway! As always, if you want to review it would be much appreciated**

**SleepyWolf2369 - Nawww you like Tina x Alexis! Well, don't worry because I'm sure you're going to like how it all ends out. Now I'm going to stop talking before I reveal the whole thing lol**

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><p>He'd watched her, as she was taken through the club in the shielding arms of Sean, who had been muttering soft words of comfort to her as impassive tears rolled down her cheeks every now and then. Nikky was with him, flirting her heart out in a way that was on the verge of becoming desperate, though he wasn't listening to her. He hadn't seen that other man; who had taken every bit of her free time for himself, anywhere near her, and it brought a self-assured smile to break out across his face.<p>

Raising a hand to scratch his chin through the stubble over his jaw, he left Nikky before she had a chance to finish talking, and made his way to her when they stopped at the bar, and Sean had to leave.

She hadn't seen him lean his arm against the counter; to which Jack turned a sneering eye from him the second he'd seen the man, staring at the side of her head intently, as if burning a hole through her skull, until she noticed that he was beside her, where it quickly changed to an inquisitive smile.

"Can you not give me a moment of peace?" she growled, rolling her eyes as she crossed her arms, "Honestly, do you have some kind of radar on me? Tina might be feeling shit, it's time to sweep in and make it even worse?"

"What?" He chuckled amusedly, "No, no. I came here to talk,"

"Oh please!" she scoffed.

"Look, I couldn't help overhearing your little . . . falling out, with Alexis earlier -"

"In this case meaning, you heard our fight and pulled up a seat right outside?" She turned a cold glare onto him,

"I wanted to take you out," he continued, ignoring all of the derogatory insults Tina could throw at him, "You need to go out, have some fun,"

"I need to relax," she countered,

"You can, when you get home. But first, come on."

She stayed quiet, she wanted to argue, but she was in no mood for it, so with a defeated sigh she surrendered. "Fine! But no flattery, no touching, nothing that might be taken in the wrong way." He went to grab her hand, but she immediately pulled it back, "I'm serious, Marcus. The second you try anything with me you will lose your little friend,"

"I get it. Nothing will happen between us," he assured her, taking her hand when she allowed him to lead her outside. "It'll be a night for you to loosen up, where we can get to know each other."

It was no later than 9:30, but the night sky was already pitch black when they reached his car. The wind lightly brushed through her hair, and she shivered as it hit the bare skin on her arms and chest, it had been a warm day, and she hadn't expected to leave the club early, so she hadn't worn anything other than a thin wrap around shirt with a pair of jeans.

"You cold?" Marcus asked her, smiling amusedly when he gave her his jacket.

"Thank you," she said, just above a whisper, as she draped it over her shoulders.

Her hair ripped through the breeze as they sped through the streets. She ran her fingers through it before facing him, "Can we just make one quick stop first?"

* * *

><p>A sneer was plastered over Nikki's face as she sat by her mirror, cold hatred filling her veins as she stared at her reflection. The brown haired slut had stolen her rightful place as the Burlesque Lounge's star, a position she had worked hard for, and Marcus from her. Even Tess, one of the few people from the club she considered a friend, was beginning to stray. Their friendship meant a lot to her; it had been Tess who picked her up before she could land in the street when she had no one left, Tess who had taken her into her home and cleaned her up, Tess who had given her a job. Tess who forgave her for being a complete bitch, and allowed her to stay at the club. She knew that she would not be able to cope without the older woman, and she knew Tess knew it too. She was like Nikki's mother, though if she ever told Tess that, she knew she would most likely lose her head.<p>

An anxiousness crept into her eyes as she delved deeper, if she didn't have Tess' friendship she would have nothing, she would _be_ nothing. She knew that the club owner's tolerance with her actions was beginning to crack, it was only a matter of time before she could no longer deal with her all together, and if that were to happen she did not know what to do with herself. She was a professional dancer, perhaps she could use her experience to find herself another job, however, she knew that the chances of another employer settling for her catty and stubborn ways wasn't high.

A hand reaching for one of the lipstick tubes from her vast collection tore her from her worries, and she turned to the side to see Jessie, "Can I borrow this for tonight?"

An irritated and angry glare suddenly lit up her features as she snatched the golden tube out of the blonde's hands, "Don't touch my stuff!"

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><p>She sat back against the leather seat, a small, blank sheet of paper in her hand while Marcus dropped the last of the boxes into the trunk of his car, the backseat already covered. She had wanted to leave a note for Alexis, but when the time had come she realised she had no clue what she wanted to say, or even if she wanted to resort to as much as writing to him, and she had decided to leave it for Alexis to find the house emptied of her belongings instead.<p>

She shivered lightly when a sudden wisp of the cold night air hit her body, and pulled Marcus' jacket tight, closing it around herself. He smiled, softly, as he took his seat beside her, "You okay?" His voice had taken on a soothing murmur, instead of the eagerness he'd had when he was persuading her to spend the night with him. She took in a breath, before nodding and facing him,

"Yeah," a bitter frown returning to her, "Just get me out of here."


	13. 11 Girls just want to have fun

**So it's been a little while since I last updated, but I'm over the writer's block, and now I have two new chapters :) Blue isn't in either, but he will be back in the chapter after next. I got a new reviewer, so thank you so much! You guys are the best, and the more I get the more inspired to continue I am :D**

**Disclaimer - I don't own anything from the movie Burlesque, only Tina, but god I wish I owned Alexis ;)**

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><p>She sat in front of him, looking out at the numerous other couples around them with a disappointed scowl, as she unwillingly waited to be served.<p>

"Why did you take me here?" she grumbled, turning her unhappy gaze to Marcus, "I thought you were taking me out."

"We are out," he said with a laugh, taking a moment to look back over his shoulder to see if a waiter was coming their way,

"I thought you meant a club, or at least a bar," she pouted, grabbing the wine glass that was placed before her, "You expect me to drink nothing but wine till I get home?"

"How long do your dinners last?" he laughed at her immature glumness, "We won't be spending the whole night here,"

"You could have just taken me to the bar just down the road from the club." She slumped back into her seat,

"You have to eat something,"

"I can eat when I get back to Georgia's," her arms crossed over her chest, "I'm starting to regret going out with you instead of Blue. He would have just taken me out drinking."

"The pretty boy? I'm sure he would've," he agreed with a small grin, "There's a bar across the road, we can go after we eat,"

"God when did you become my father?" she exclaimed, rolling her eyes, annoyed, "Fine. I'll eat something, but the second I'm finished I'm going there, with or without you."

One hour, and four glasses of wine later, she stepped through the bar's doors, knocking people out of her way as she marched, swaying on her feet lightly, to collect her prize.

"Give me a vodka martini, shaken. And keep them coming." I turn away from the bartender as he begins mixing the alcohol, turning a blank stare to Marcus when he takes the stool beside me,

"You weren't lying when you said you'd leave with or without me," he breathed a chuckle,

"Did you suppose I'd wait?" she raised a brow, "I'm still here with you because I want to have one night without caring about anything, that doesn't mean I hate you any less."

She nodded a thank you when she took her drink,

"If you got to know me you wouldn't," he stated with an arrogant smile,

"Really?" she questioned, sarcasm dripping from her lips, "And why's that, Marcus?"

"We're two very similar people." At that her eyebrows disappeared beneath her hair in disbelief, "It's true, name something and I guarantee we share that little feature."

"Oh please, we have nothing in common. I actually want meaning in my life, I want a loving relationship with someone who cares about me, someone who will love me despite my faults and who respects that I won't be changing for anyone," she started, lifting the toothpick from her glass, and tapping the liquid from the olive, before slipping it between her teeth, "You on the other hand go out having one night stands, and never call the poor girl who spent a night with your bigheaded ego after you've kicked her out of your bed."

"There's a good reason for that," he told her, leaning his elbow against the counter,

"And that is? You can never find someone you care about going about the way you are,"

"Exactly," he granted, "and there's no way for me to get attached to whoever I'm spending the night with. You don't get attached to someone you don't get hurt if they ever leave. And the sex is always a plus," he grinned, roguishly.

"You don't want to find someone you could spend the rest of your life with?" she asked him, her brow furrowed.

"If it happens it happens, if it doesn't I don't let it bother me," he shrugged,

"How can you not care about being alone? Are you that self-centred you don't care about living your whole life without anyone caring about you? Maybe even loving you?"

"I don't see the point, I mean, why look out for love when I have cold blooded hatred right here?

A light hearted laugh escaped from her as she exchanged her empty glass for a new martini,

"But still . . . You haven't ever fallen for anyone? Never?"

"Of course I have, but as hard as I've tried I can't get over them," he muttered,

"Who is it?" she asked him curiously, choking on her drink when he gave her a meaningful look, "Please . . . that isn't going to work on me," she said between coughs, "You don't love me, you love my body."

He let out an annoyed groan when she refused to look at him, "For once can you believe that I'm not just thinking of myself and actually telling the truth?"

"I'm afraid I can't. I've seen too much to believe you."

"I care about you, Tina," he cut in, "I don't know how I can make you realise it, but I know you have some sort of feelings for me, whether or not they're the same as mine."

For the first time since she had met him, Marcus had left her speechless. She took the toothpick between two fingers, stirring it through the alcohol. "Just get drinking."

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><p>She didn't know how many drinks she'd had, but before she knew it, her normal calm sentences had become loud shouts and obnoxious laughs. They'd moved from the bar to a club further inside the city, howling out thunderous laughs when either fell to the sidewalk, and she was now throwing herself to the vigorous beat of the music. Keeping close to Marcus, and clutching onto his shirt tightly so he couldn't escape. His arms wrapped around her, and she closed her legs around his waist as the last of the alcohol took her over. She snatched his jaw, closing the space between them, and crashed their lips together, holding onto his face while trying not to dig her nails into his skin. His tongue slipped into her mouth, which she allowed, and greeted by licking it with her own until they both pulled away. And staggered outside to his car with eager intentions to get to a bedroom.<p> 


	14. 12 Bad regrets and a hangover

**So this chapter was inspired by HowlynMad's review, hopefully all of you Alexis/Tina fans enjoy it, it starts off the later chapters I have planned, which I won't go into further detail because I know I will give away WAY too much (lol). So as usual, reviews will be loved :D**

**Disclaimer - I don't own anything from the movie Burlesque, only Tina**

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><p>She woke with a groggy start, grunting painfully as she covered her eyes with her hand to block the sunlight, and rolled onto her side, surprised when she felt empty space beside her. She opened her eyes, flinching as the result of her drinking kicked in when she sat up, confused as to why she was in a room that was not Alexis', until the memories of the last night came flooding back to her. Of course she wouldn't be with Alexis, not after they broke up, not after the fight they'd had. Certainly not after what she had done. And she felt a new feeling crossing her, an emptiness she hadn't experienced in years, and a guilt she hadn't felt for even longer. She regretted how she'd acted last night, and the recent nights leading up to it, she should have listened to Georgia and stayed back, where she was safe from any angered rampages. She should have listened to Jack, and Ali, and kept herself at a safe distance from Blue. Blue, the second the name passed her mind she bit back a growl. It was his fault, if he hadn't have asked for a private dance in the first place she wouldn't be in this mess. If he hadn't pushed her further she wouldn't believe that Alexis didn't want a thing to do with her now, though she didn't blame him if she was right.<p>

Though she knew that she was just as much to blame herself, she should have gone to Tess about him. If a problem ever rose within the club Tess could get rid of it. And more than anything she should have kept her thoughts of him strictly professional, hell she shouldn't have thought of him at all, with the same no-strings-attached basis she had with anyone else who entered the club.

"You're up." A gentle voice grabbed her attention, and she looked up to see Georgia smiling softly, her hair lightly tangled and a cup of coffee held between her hands.

"How are you feeling?"

"Terrible," Tina choked, her voice hoarse, and her throat feeling as bad as she was sure she looked, she assumed it was from her throwing up her whole stomach overnight. "What happened last night?"

"You left work early. And came home late, at 2:00 in the morning, I think," she sat at Tina's feet, "You were with Marcus."

"Oh, god!" the brunette groaned, bringing a hand to her head as a new throb of pain passed, "I don't remember anything. Nothing happened did it?"

"No, you were out cold when he brought you here. He said you passed out in his car," the redhead assured her. "You had quite a night."

"Yeah . . . " Tina mumbled, looking down at her hands. " . . . How's Alexis?" It was the one thing she didn't want to ask, talking about it meant it had anything but a terrible dream.

Georgia hesitated, biting her lip awkwardly as she looked away for a short while, "He's just as bad, maybe worse. He went straight to the front desk and didn't say a word to anybody. Except a few tense goodbyes when the regulars left. Everyone else got the cold shoulder."

"Oh god . . . " Tina slid down to her back, feeling as though she was about to throw up the remaining contents of her gut right then and there. "He hates me . . . "

"He doesn't hate you," Georgia assured her, "His heart's broken, he hates Blue because he thinks you're in love with him. You meant the world to him."

"Like that's any better . . . "

Georgia stayed quiet after that, but she gave her a comforting smile and placed a hand on her foot.

"I have to talk to him," the brunette said, looking up at the other with a low frown.

"Not today, you need to take a day to relax. I'll be out with Damon for a few hours, so get your rest, and if you need anything you can call." The redhead got to her feet, and sent her friend a final comforting gaze before leaving the bedroom, though not before she heard a gravelly shout, "I'm going tomorrow."

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><p>Tess sat at her desk, with her head in her hands, with Sean being her only source of comfort while she heard the audience outside her office becoming rowdy and agitated without Tina on the stage for their entertainment.<p>

"Don't worry about it," Sean had told her, "It's one night. Before you know it, she'll be back and shaking her assets for the crowd. Till then they'll have to get used to her not being here." He smiled feebly when he'd gained a weak laugh, even if she knew it was a lie. Neither of them knew how long it'd be until Tina's return, it was obvious that she'd been much more stressed than her usual state during this one week, neither of them knew whether it'd take a day or two, or as long as another week until she had calmed herself. And she worried that during that time the crowd would become smaller than it was already, until it eventually deteriorated into nothing. No crowd meant no money, no money meant she had no way to pay off her most recent, and highest, mortgage on the building, and if she failed to pay it off, she'd lose her club, and the girls, who she'd grown to love as her own children, some closer to her than others, and who she could never imagine losing, along with it.

"Tell me we're going to be fine," the older woman pleaded, on the verge of tears as she lifted her head to face Sean, who had moved up beside her and placed a consoling hand on her shoulder.

"We're going to be fine," he said, taking the bills from her line of vision, "We'll find a way to pay it all off."

She wiped the few tears that had dropped from her eyes, and regained part of her strong composure, "Tell me a new lie."

"You're not gorgeous," he murmured. She allowed a small crooked smile pass as she lowered her head back into her arms,

"You're an asshole."

He smiled, and left her to gain some time to herself, only until she needed a shoulder to cry on. And she knew that she could rely on him to settle her rampant nerves whenever she needed him to. Sean was the one person she could ever reveal her true vulnerability to, and for that she was truly grateful.


End file.
